Yorkshire Dales Walks
Wild Boar Fell & Swarth Fell
Date: 24th Sept 2011
Distance: 6.6 miles
Ascent: 2095 feet
Time: 4 hours 10 mins
With: Matt
Start Grid Ref: SD728971
Walk Summary:
The first day of a two day expedition took us on to Wild Boar Fell before an early pitch on the summit of Swarth Fell.
Route Summary: Uldale - Grain Gill - Sand Tarn - Wild Boar Fell - The Nab - Swarth Fell - Swarth Fell Pike
Pictures:
1. The pretty waterfall in Grain Gill
2. Sand Tarn
3. On the summit of Wild Boar Fell
4. Matt looking down into Mallerstang from The Nab
5. The prominent line of cairns above High White Scar
6. Matt on Wild Boar Fell
7. Swarth Fell
8. Matt on the col between Wild Boar Fell and Swarth Fell
9. Looking across Mallerstang to High Seat
10. Wild Boar Fell from Swarth Fell
11. On the summit of Swarth Fell
12. A distant view of Morecambe Bay
13. Matt on Swarth Fell
14. Our pitch next to the wall on Swarth Fell
Walk Detail: Despite the earlier promise of good weather we started the first day of a two day trip under grey and dreary skies. Shortly after leaving the car where we'd parked at the road end in Uldale it began to drizzle which, combined with the strong winds meant that we soon began to regret not wearing our waterproof trousers.
An attractive waterfall near the top of Grains Gill was the highlight of a fairly soggy climb up on to Wild Boar Fell. Without the benefit of any real views it was quite a dull trudge. A break in the cloud offered us a brief glimpse of Sand Tarn where we found a spot sheltered from the wind to eat our lunch.
Due to the low cloud there was little to see from the summit of Wild Boar Fell though we were at least able to enjoy some hazy views of Mallerstang from the rocky outcrop of The Nab. Finally patches of sunshine began to appear just as we were leaving the fine line of stone men that stand dramatically above High White Scar. By the time we'd descended to the col with Swarth Fell the cloud was beginning to break up nicely.
Our original plan had been to camp up on Baugh Fell but by this time it was clear that we probably wouldn't make it up there until after dark. This fact coupled with the strong winds and generally wet conditions meant that we had been considering giving the camping a miss and to perhaps head back to the car from Swarth Fell. The sudden improvement in the weather and the fine views we were now enjoying from Swarth Fell encouraged us to stay out.
In the end we decided to pitch our tents not far from the summit of Swarth Fell making use of the nearby wall to protect our tents from the worst of the wind. Not long after we began to get our tents out the hill fog descended once again. It didn't really matter by this point though as by the time we'd got the tents up and made some dinner it was already dark.
The next day we continued our walk up on to Baugh Fell.
Follow me on ...
